


Betrayer and Betrayed

by AylaPascal



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-09
Updated: 2015-08-09
Packaged: 2018-04-13 19:12:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,615
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4533825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AylaPascal/pseuds/AylaPascal
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Peter betrays the Potters</p>
            </blockquote>





	Betrayer and Betrayed

Peter realises early on that it’s simply easier when he agrees with people.  
  
"Nobody likes to be told that they're wrong," his mother tells him as she tucks him into bed at night.   
  
This is how he became friends with James and Snape didn't.   
  
Peter doesn't think much about the _other_ consequences of his unwillingness to disagree. He doubts it will ever come to anything anyway. It isn't as if he matters in the scheme of things. It isn't as though he's _important_.   
  
The Dark Lord seems to think differently, but Peter knows better than to trust him completely.   
  
-  
  
"Our world is poised on the brink of a knife. If we continue to follow the likes of Albus Dumbledore, we will slowly be assimilated into and swallowed by the parasitic Muggle world. My loyal supporters and friends, we must work to avert this tragic fate. Join me and we will herald a glorious new return to the traditional principles of magic."   
  
_We will have more loyal supporters tonight_ , Peter thinks as he watches the crowd burst into spontaneous applause.   
  
"Our Ministry is corrupt! We cannot rely on them to help us defeat this Muggle menace. Indeed, within us, disguised as witches and wizards, walk Muggle agents who would like nothing else but to see the destruction of our great and noble world. For centuries, we have practiced our magic the same way. For centuries, we've held the same sacred customs and ideals dear, for this is the golden thread of magic that binds us all together. But now, these Muggle-borns seek to change us. They bring these new ideas of 'electricity' and 'democracy'. They insist on the wonders of the Muggle world.   
  
"I ask you, my fellow witches and wizards, to look beyond the pretty words of these Muggle-borns and into the rotten heart of the Muggle world. Corruption seethes in their higher offices. No witch or wizard has ever designed weapons that kill not only each other but the very world that sustains us. No witch or wizard has ever systematically released poisons into the air to destroy everything around us. No witch or wizard has ever had the arrogance to presume themselves above the law of nature.   
  
"I hear some call these Muggles animals. Let me tell you now that they are worse than animals. They are a plague. They are a curse on the planet."   
  
Peter sees some people shifting in the crowd. It is apparent that the Dark Lord's words were having an effect. Some are frowning, apparently in deep thought. Others seem horrified. Yet, others are looking like they were awaking from Dreamless Sleep.   
  
"I call for a complete halt to wizard-Muggle relations! We cannot continue to let ourselves become destroyed by this Muggle parasite. Who shall join me and see the triumph of wizardry once more?"   
  
There is thunderous applause.   
  
-  
  
Peter knows the Dark Lord has many faces.   
  
There is the rabble-rouser. This is the face He shows to the members of the public brave enough to turn up to their rallies.   
  
There is the charismatic leader. This is the face Peter prefers. When Peter watches Him with this face on, he believes that they will win this war and be vindicated in the history books.   
  
There is the inquisitive researcher. Peter sees this face when his Lord speaks to Severus Snape. Snape is handled carefully, _differently_ , to the rest of the Death Eaters. Shaking hands are not conducive to successful potion brewing.   
  
And finally, there is the sadistic torturer. This is the face Peter cowers under when he has misspoken. This is the face he sees holding the wand that says _Crucio_ so calmly as if it is simply a greeting. This is the face he sees in his nightmares.   
  
-  
  
The door opens and Peter sees the bright, smiling face of Lily Potter.   
  
"Peter!" she exclaims.   
  
His heart twists and something inside him dies a little. She sounds genuinely pleased to see him. _She's pretending_ , he tells himself viciously. _How could she ever like somebody like me?_ He stops himself from clutching at his left forearm just in time and wonders what expressions would flit over her delicate features if she ever saw the burned Mark on his arm.   
  
"It's been so long," Lily says as she takes his cloak from his arm. She looks at the material admiringly. "This is beautiful; where did you get it?"   
  
Peter can feel himself paling. "Oh, just a shop in Diagon Alley," he tells her. _Just a present from the Dark Lord to all of his faithful followers._  
  
A hand is clapped on his back and Peter feels himself stumble. He looks up and sees James. He gives a weak smile. "You look well, James."   
  
James gives him a smile, but it is simply the smile of old forgotten friendship. Peter doesn't think the smile reaches his eyes. "As do you, old friend. What brings you here to Godric's Hollow?"   
  
"Can't I drop by to see my old friends?" Peter says, trying to sound hurt. It isn't hard because a part of him – a part he thought he had long quashed – is hurt. Did James forget their old friendship so easily? Or –   
  
As Peter watches, a door to his right swings open and Sirius walks out. "That would be a beautiful nursery," he says before he stops and stares at Peter standing there. "Peter," he says evenly, after a short pause.   
  
Or perhaps it was simply him that was easily forgettable.   
  
Peter gives his old friend a smile. "How've you been?"   
  
Sirius ignores his question. "What are you doing here?"   
  
"Sirius!" Lily exclaims.   
  
He turns towards her and shrugs. "It's a perfectly valid question. You haven't spoken to any of us in months. The last we heard, you seemed to be very good friends with my – with Regulus."   
  
"We were working together in the Ministry. I wouldn't say we were friends exactly."   
  
"Good." Sirius's voice is cold. "Considering he was found last night dead with a certain brand on his left arm."   
  
Peter isn't able to keep the shock off his face. "Regulus was a Death Eater?" he finally manages to gasp out.   
  
Sirius snorts. "Apparently Voldemort killed him. We certainly had nothing to do with it."   
  
"That's impossible!" Peter exclaims before thinking. He quickly adds, "I just never thought Regulus could have been a Death Eater. He was so nice and polite to me." _And introduced me to the Dark Lord_ , Peter adds silently. _Where were you Sirius when that happened? Where was your protection then?_  
  
"That's one thing we've learned as Aurors," James says bitterly. "Anybody can be a Death Eater." He stares around at them. "I'm just glad I can trust all of you and Remus."   
  
Peter swallows a lump in his throat. "So," he says, proud of his voice not cracking, "what was it I heard about a nursery?"   
  
-  
  
In his spare time, Peter traces the Dark Mark on his left arm. Normally, he puts a glamour on it so that he can move around in short sleeves, but in the privacy of his own home, the glamour comes off and the Mark stands out stark against the pale skin.   
  
Somehow he thinks that it should feel different, warmer perhaps, or colder, but if he closes his eyes, he can't even tell where the Mark is. It's as much a part of him as his arms and legs.   
  
"It defines me," he murmurs.   
  
-  
  
Peter kneels, still cloaked and masked, before the Dark Lord and kisses the hem of his robes. "My Lord," he murmurs.   
  
"Rise, my loyal servant."   
  
Peter stands but keeps his head bowed. Even through a mask, one does not look at the Dark Lord as if one is an equal.   
  
"You are my greatest pawn. You will help me win this war. The Potters will rue the day the trusted you."   
  
Out of the corner of his eye, Peter sees Snape's eyes narrow.   
  
-  
  
Peter's voice is steady as he says the binding words. "I am the Secret Keeper and your secret is now Kept." There is a flare of bright light between him and the Potters.   
  
James smiles at him tiredly. "Thank you for doing this, Peter."   
  
"I would do anything for you, James," Peter says and wishes that it was still true.   
  
-  
  
 _Betrayal.  
  
Treachery.   
  
Duplicity. _  
  
None of these things come easily to Peter. He learns them slowly and painfully under the tutelage of Bella.   
  
"They deserve this," she tells him, a gleam in her dark eyes that are so like Sirius's. "They never appreciated you. You will make them pay. Those filthy Mudbloods and Muggle-lovers. _Crucio!"_  
  
Peter writhes on the floor of the dungeon as she smiles above him.   
  
"They couldn't stop this, could they? They couldn't stop us from getting to you. What makes you think they could win the war?" she tells him as he trembles from the aftershocks. "If you hate me, _channel the anger_. Use it and help our Lord destroy the Potters."   
  
Peter recognises what she's trying to do but is helpless to stop it.   
  
-  
  
 _But now_ , he smiles grimly, _it has all paid off._  
  
He turns around, stares at the door to Godric's Hollow and wonders whether he should say something.   
  
Perhaps he could say: _I never meant this to happen._  
  
Perhaps he could say: _You promised you'd be there for me and you weren't._  
  
Perhaps he could say: _I never thought I'd actually matter._  
  
Perhaps he could say: _I never believed that things could go this wrong simply because of me._  
  
Perhaps he could say: _James, Lily, I'm sorry._  
  
In the end, despite all these being true, Peter settles for saying nothing and simply Disapparates away. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to my beta noticeably.


End file.
